(1) Monitoring.
(a) Any discharge authorized by a permit may be subject to such monitoring requirements as may be reasonably required by the department, including the installation, use, and maintenance of monitoring equipment or methods (including, where appropriate, biological monitoring methods). These monitoring requirements would normally include:
(i) Flow (in gallons per day);
(ii) Pollutants (either directly or indirectly through the use of accepted correlation coefficients or equivalent measurements) which are subject to reduction or elimination under the terms and conditions of the permit;
(iii) Pollutants which the department finds could have a significant impact on the quality of surface waters; and
(iv) Pollutants specified by the administrator, in regulations issued pursuant to the FWPCA, as subject to monitoring.
(b) Each effluent flow or pollutant required to be monitored pursuant to (a) of this subsection shall be monitored at intervals sufficiently frequent to yield data which reasonably characterizes the nature of the discharge of the monitored effluent flow or pollutant.
Variable effluent flows and pollutant levels may be monitored at more frequent intervals than relatively constant effluent flows and pollutant levels which may be monitored at less frequent intervals.
(c) Monitoring of intake water, influent to treatment facilities, internal waste streams, and/or receiving waters may be required when determined necessary by the department to verify compliance with net discharge limitations or removal requirements, to verify that proper waste treatment or control practices are being maintained, or to determine the effects of the discharge on the surface waters of the state.
(2) Recording of monitoring activities and results. Any permit which requires monitoring of the authorized discharge shall require that:
(a) The permittee shall maintain records of all information resulting from any monitoring activities required of him in his permit;
(b) Any records of monitoring activities and results shall include for all samples:
(i) The date, exact place, and time of sampling;
(ii) The dates analyses were performed;
(iii) Who performed the analyses;
(iv) The analytical techniques/methods used; and
(v) The results of such analyses; and
(c) The permittee shall be required to retain for a minimum of three years any records of monitoring activities and results including all original strip chart recording for continuous monitoring instrumentation and calibration and maintenance records. This period of retention shall be extended during the course of any unresolved litigation regarding the discharge of pollutants by the permittee or when requested by the department or regional administrator.
(3) Reporting of monitoring results.
(a) The permittee shall periodically report (at a frequency of not less than once per year) on the proper reporting form, the monitoring results obtained pursuant to monitoring requirements in a permit. In addition to the required reporting form, the department at its discretion may require submission of such other results as it determines to be necessary.
(b) Monitoring reports shall be signed by:
(i) In the case of corporations, by a responsible corporate officer or his duly authorized representative, if such representative is responsible for the overall operation of the facility from which the discharge originates.
(ii) In the case of a partnership, by a general partner.
(iii) In the case of a sole proprietorship, by the proprietor.
(iv) In the case of a municipal, state or other public facility, by either a principal executive officer, ranking elected official, or other duly authorized employee.
(4) Use of registered or accredited laboratories:
(a) Except as established in (c) of this subsection, monitoring data submitted to the department in accordance with this chapter shall be prepared by a laboratory accredited under the provisions of chapter
173-50 WAC no later than indicated by the appropriate date below:
July 1, 1992, major dischargers;
July 1, 1993, all permittees with a permitted average flow rate greater than five million gallons per day.
These requirements are effective and binding on all permittees under the authority of rule, regardless of whether they have been included as conditions of a permit.
(b) Except as established in (c) of this subsection, monitoring data submitted to the department in accordance with this chapter shall be prepared by a laboratory registered or accredited under the provisions of chapter
173-50 WAC no later than July 1, 1994, for all NPDES permittees not covered under (a) of this subsection.
These requirements are effective and binding on all permittees under the authority of rule, regardless of whether they have been included as conditions of a permit.
(c) The following parameters need not be accredited or registered:
(i) Flow;
(ii) Temperature;
(iii) Settleable solids;
(iv) Conductivity, except that conductivity shall be accredited if the laboratory must otherwise be registered or accredited;
(v) pH, except that pH shall be accredited if the laboratory must otherwise be registered or accredited;
(vi) Turbidity, except that turbidity shall be accredited if the laboratory must otherwise be registered or accredited; and
(vii) Parameters which are used solely for internal process control.
[Statutory Authority: RCW
90.48.035. WSR 02-05-055 (Order 01-08), § 173-220-210, filed 2/15/02, effective 3/18/02. Statutory Authority: RCW
43.21A.230. WSR 93-20-011 (Order 92-53), § 173-220-210, filed 9/22/93, effective 10/23/93; WSR 90-21-090 (Order 90-21), § 173-220-210, filed 10/19/90, effective 11/19/90. Statutory Authority: RCW
90.54.020 and chapter
90.48 RCW. WSR 88-22-059 (Order 88-9), § 173-220-210, filed 11/1/88. Statutory Authority: Chapter
90.48 RCW. WSR 84-11-024 (Order DE 84-19), § 173-220-210, filed 5/11/84. Statutory Authority: RCW
90.48.035 and
90.48.260. WSR 82-24-078 (Order DE 82-39), § 173-220-210, filed 12/1/82; Order DE 74-1, § 173-220-210, filed 2/15/74.]
